********************************************************
NOTICE
********************************************************
This document was converted from
WordPerfect to ASCII Text format.
Content from the original version of the document such as
headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, graphics, and page numbers
will not show up in this text version.
All text attributes such as bold, italic, underlining, etc. from the
original document will not show up in this text version.
Features of the original document layout such as
columns, tables, line and letter spacing, pagination, and margins
will not be preserved in the text version.
If you need the complete document, download the
WordPerfect version or Adobe Acrobat version, if available.
*****************************************************************
Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
Liability of )
)
Jacor Broadcasting Corporation )
)
Licensee of WEBN(FM) )
Cincinnati, Ohio )
)
for a Forfeiture )
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
Adopted: August 25, 1997 Released: August 27, 1997
By the Chief, Mass Media Bureau:
1. The Commission, by the Chief of the Mass Media Bureau, acting pursuant to authority delegated
by 0.283 of the Commission's Rules, has under consideration a $4,000 Notice of Apparent Liability (NAL)
issued June 24, 1997 to Jacor Broadcasting Corporation, licensee of Station WEBN(FM), Cincinnati, Ohio,
for the broadcast of apparently indecent material. The licensee has indicated, through its counsel, that it will
not file a response to the NAL. Nor will it pay the forfeiture. Further, Jacor has informed the Bureau that
it will not take any affirmative action with regard to the NAL.
2. Pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 312(a)(6) and 503(b)(1)(D), the Commission has statutory authority to
take appropriate administrative action when licensees broadcast material in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1464,
which provides criminal penalties for anyone who "utters any obscene, indecent or profane language by
means of radio communication."
3. The Commission has defined indecency as language or material that, in context, depicts or
describes, in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast
medium, sexual or excretory activities or organs. Infinity Broadcasting Corporation of Pennsylvania, 2 FCC
Rcd 2705, 2705 (1987) (citing Pacifica Foundation, 56 FCC 2d 94, 98 (1975), aff'd sub nom. FCC v. Pacifica
Foundation, 438 U.S. 726 (1978)). The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
has upheld the Commission's authority to restrict the broadcast of indecent material at times when there is
a reasonable risk that children may be in the audience. Action for Children's Television v. FCC, 852 F.2d
1332 (D.C. Cir. 1988). The court subsequently concluded that a 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. "safe harbor" was
justified as a properly tailored means of vindicating the government's compelling interest in the welfare of
children. Action for Children's Television v. FCC, 58 F.3d 654 (D.C. Cir. 1995), cert. denied, 116 S. Ct. 701
(1996).
4. A complaint filed with the Commission indicated that on February 25 and 26, 1997, Radio
Station WEBN(FM), Cincinnati, Ohio, broadcast "Bubba, the Love Sponge" between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m.
and alleged that the broadcasts were indecent. The NAL found that certain excerpts from these broadcasts
were apparently indecent, because they described sexual and excretory activities or organs in patently
offensive terms. Additionally, the NAL noted that the broadcasts aired at times when there was a reasonable
risk that children may have been in the audience. Absent any explanation from the licensee, we conclude
that the cited material is actionably indecent and that the imposition of a forfeiture for its broadcast is
appropriate.
5. Accordingly, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, IT IS
ORDERED, that Jacor Broadcasting Corporation, licensee of WEBN(FM), Cincinnati, Ohio, FORFEIT to
the United States the sum of four thousand dollars ($4,000) for its willful and repeated violation of Section
1464 of Title 18 of the United States Code. Payment of the forfeiture may be made by mailing to the
Commission a check or similar instrument payable to the Federal Communications Commission. In regard
to this forfeiture proceeding, the licensee may take any of the actions set forth in Section 1.80 of the
Commission's Rules, as summarized in the attachment to this Memorandum Opinion and Order.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Roy J. Stewart
Chief, Mass Media Bureau